


Brotherly Love

by orcsmoocher



Category: The Elementalists (Visual Novel)
Genre: Comfort/Angst, Fluff, Nightmares, Not a pairing, Other, Sleepovers, Sweet, i hc that atlas/mc have sleepovers all the time, i never know what to tag these, sleepytime stuff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-11
Updated: 2020-07-11
Packaged: 2021-03-04 17:47:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25210354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orcsmoocher/pseuds/orcsmoocher
Summary: Atlas is a (not so) secret softie, comforting his twin brother after he has a terrible nightmare.
Relationships: Atlas Ernhardt & Main Character (The Elementalists)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 10





	Brotherly Love

Bodies. Elysian was surrounded by bodies. Strapped to a table, next to his twin brother, whose fingers were quickly growing cold and stiff in his hand. Something… something went wrong for Raife, but it also went wrong for them, too. The machine that was siphoning their magick lay broken around the table, but so did his friends. The Dread's world domination plan had failed, but they were all going to die regardless.

Tears streaking down his face, Elysian struggled in vain to free himself from the shackles that pinned his wrists and ankles to the table. He felt the growing welts on his skin as the rusted metal rubbed him raw, his skin becoming red and angry. At some point, it had started raining, frigid drops of water that chilled him to the soul, impacted his skin like needles. He watched as it washed the pool of blood on the roof through the channels between the bricks, carrying it away to the lower floors. Running, dripping rivers of red, with Raife parting the flow as he stepped towards Elysian; terrible eyes glowing with a menace that sent lances of pure horror through his spine. 

Elysian cried out for someone, anyone. But no one came.

He let out a sharp gasp, an intake of breath so sudden that it made his chest and throat hurt with the exertion. It didn't help that his ribs still ached from his injuries, or that his throat was so dry it felt like he was breathing through a paper tube. His hand flew to his heart, beating a mile a minute, and his eyes flew across his field of vision, frenzied and wild. He was lying on a bed, the covers scattered all around due to his thrashing. His posters covered the walls, old homework and textbooks scattered on every solid surface available. He was in his dorm room, alive and safe… but the terror lingered. Hanging his head, he let the tears fall as he trembled. Looking at his clock, he saw that it was still three in the morning. Hugging his knees feebly to his chest, the emotion spilling over then turned into frustration; knowing that he wouldn't be able to get any more sleep, as patchy and rough as it was already. 

On the floor, a man-sized lump of a sleeping bag wriggled to life, and a head poked out, ruffling his silver hair. Atlas cracked his eyes open, glowing in the dark a little bit. Elysian could feel the fact that his brother's Moon magick was searching - probing the room to find the source of the sudden raw emotion. It didn't take long to find. His voice was rough with sleep but gentle, laced with a growing concern much unlike his usual monotone - even hard at times - sound. "Elysian?" He asked, his expression softened the slightest amount. There was no irritation written on his features, even as he was roughly awakened by the noise. 

"I'm really s-sorry," Elysian stammered, chest heaving as he was wracked with sobs. He paused to breathe briefly, though he still struggled to spit out his next sentence as he gulped desperately for air. "I'm sorry I woke you." 

"Raife?" Atlas asked. Elysian nodded shakily. A long silence passed, pregnant with apprehension. Atlas parted his lips to speak, but no words came out. No words would come, no matter how hard he thought, even if he wracked his brain for a single syllable that could be considered a comfort - he just didn't know. They all seemed so fake and unhelpful, refusing to assemble themselves into a coherent sentence. How could he look his brother in the eye and tell him everything was okay? He wasn't okay, and Atlas wasn't even okay. No matter what he said, it wasn't like he believed in it either. He cringed as he met Elysian's expectant gaze. He looked so sad… his lip trembled, eyes shimmering with a watery film, and he let out a series of ugly noises as he sniffled and gasped and whined through the tears that he shed like rain. 

With every moment that he stayed silent, he felt a greater pang of guilt - Elysian deserved better. If any of his friends were here, they'd have him giggling like a schoolgirl by now… but he couldn't even manage a single, much-needed talk. He started to stutter out what he hoped was a comfort, but he stopped. It was just a worthless platitude. "...Me too." He managed, finally. 

"How do you do it?" Elysian asked, managing to calm himself enough to speak coherently. "You always seem so calm."

Atlas looked down at the floor. "My goals kept me going. It's… it's good that you're not calm," he shook his head. "It means you're not used to seeing shit like this." 

"I just want to sleep. I'm so tired," Elysian whined, dropping his head into his knees. "I've seen everyone die over and over and over, and my imagination just won't stop showing me _what ifs_ -" he suddenly took a sharp breath as he cut himself off. "He saved you for last tonight. I held your hand." 

"...Sorry. I just don't know what I can say to comfort you," Scratching his head awkwardly, Atlas thought until the obvious solution came to him at last. If traditional methods of keeping the nightmares away wouldn't work, then he'd force it with magick. It could help, or make it worse - but he could tell that his brother was willing to try anything at this point. He crawled out of his sleeping bag, unzipping it until he could lay it out flat while Elysian watched curiously, not moving even as his pillows and blankets were snatched from the bed. 

Atlas arranged the bedspreads into a large, circular area on the floor, creating a snug nest of cloth topped with pillows. He patted one of them, beckoning Elysian to come down. The little quirk of his lips didn't go unnoticed as he swung his legs over the edge of the bed. "...A sleepover," he noted, carefully crawling into the blanket pile on his hands and knees. Atlas remained outside of the circle. 

"Yeah. I think I can help." Atlas readjusted a few of the pillows as Elysian curled into a ball on his side, watching as the silvery glow in his brother's eyes grew very bright. His fingertips began to shine the same color, then his palms. The magick emitted a gentle, melodic chime, a constant noise that relaxed Elysian as he shifted his whole focus to listen. 

"What spell is that?" 

"Shh. Just get comfortable, okay?" Atlas mumbled something, but Elysian couldn't make out any words. He breathed deeply, gaze locked onto the pair of glowing eyes in the dark. The way that they swayed gently as his head moved, the brief moments where they winked back into darkness when he blinked… it was almost hypnotic. Instinctively, he nestled deeper into the blankets. He heard the ghosts of whispers as Atlas recited incantations, drawing eccentric symbols in the air with his fingers as the pen. The chiming got louder as pleasant little beams of light appeared where he had traced the shapes. "Okay. Now focus on my pointer finger," he said, pointing at the space between Elysian's eyes. When he was sure he got his brother's attention, he began to gently move this finger left and right, staring deep into the brown eyes that slowly slid side to side in perfect sync. He spoke as gently as he could. "Clear your mind. The dreamcatcher will keep the nightmares away." 

"Mm, okay."

"Shut up. It won't work if you keep talking." 

Elysian obeyed, falling silent. As he followed the sight of Atlas' fingertip, his eyes glazed over and lips parted slightly. He curled up tighter, wrapping his arms around a pillow. Atlas suddenly pulled back and snapped his fingers. "Sleep," he whispered, and instantly his brother's eyes fluttered closed. A minute later, he heard Elysian's breath steady. _I hope this works,_ he thought. It would be upsetting if it didn't. The spell he cast was one he only read about, but it was simple enough to perform for a Moon-Att like him. In situations like combat it had no practicality, so he didn't practice it. As tired as he was, he didn't go back to sleep - he needed to monitor Elysian and make sure the magick was really working. Moon magick, dealing so intimately with emotions, could be disastrous to the mind when gone wrong…

Seeing his brother sleeping rather soundly, Atlas settled on the edge of the blanket circle with his legs crossed. The silence allowed him to see just how much the year's events took a toll on his brother: his skin was sallow and pale, bandages still wrapped around healing wounds on his arms and legs, and he'd definitely lost a ton of weight since Atlas saw him in his Hartfeld dorm room. Atlas caught himself reaching for a lock of his brother's snow-white hair, moving to sweep it away from his eyes. He stopped and pulled back. 

The magick held steady for a while longer, the moon-shaped dreamcatcher shimmering pleasantly in the night air. Elysian rolled occasionally, shifting, though he remained fast asleep. Atlas could tell that it was nothing to be worried about - his brother was an active sleeper; often falling into bed and waking up halfway across the room with limbs contorted like a ragdoll's hours later. It was pretty loud and annoying, most nights. He checked the clock. 4 AM. 

An hour passed, and so did a dark, puffy cloud over the full moon. Atlas stared out of the window, keeping a watchful eye and ear on Elysian's sleeping form. He dragged his eyes across the silhouettes of Penderghast's stately buildings, imaginary creatures tracing their outlines by leaping from roof to roof. The nightwatcher sentries ambled casually across the grounds, lanterns in their hands as they parted the fog that clung to the ground like a blanket of smoke. The air was noisy with a breeze, carrying the sound of the birds that sang at night, and the sweet scent of mayday buds. It was incredibly picturesque and peaceful - no human in sight. Though, his eyes did look to the trees and he felt a sense of apprehensive longing. It was 5 AM.

Nodding off, Atlas shook his head. He heard his brother stir and turned around. His brother's face was scrunched in discomfort, and as he rolled he let out a faint groan. The cloud cover had previously completely snuffed out the moonlight pouring through the window, and the sun was beginning to rise - the dreamcatcher had probably lost power. What was he going to do with all that nightmare that it collected, he wondered. Perhaps a potion…

He kneeled before his brother's sleeping body and laid a cautious hand on his head, thumb gently moving circles through his hair. Atlas channeled his magick directly into him this time. It was a light touch, uncertain, but it seemed to have worked. Elysian stilled on contact, hugging the pillow closer to his chest. "It's okay," Atlas mumbled - it was the ghost of a whisper. The clock read a little past 6 AM. 

Atlas spent the next hour making sure that his brother's sleep went undisturbed. Any time that he stepped away, the restlessness began again. Sometimes he'd simply channel his magick from a short distance, and sometimes he'd keep a hand on his shoulder until he stilled. However, this time Elysian had found his hand and unconsciously taken it, curling his slender fingers around it and tucking it under his chin like it was a dear stuffed bear - so at the moment, Atlas was stuck. 

Despite himself, he couldn't fight the tiny smile that bowed his lips. Elysian was asleep and happy, and even Atlas was ready to admit that he liked the feeling - even if his hand was becoming clammy. He was egged on by the knowledge that Elysian would wake up not knowing exactly what was done for him; and the anonymity of his actions was comforting in a way. Working behind the scenes was something he was used to - he had been a part of his brother's life the entire time, even if Elysian never realized. Tiny Atlas would sneak a little peek through a mirror here, or a glance through a rain puddle on young Elysian's path to school there - it made Atlas happy to check up on him, just… making sure that he was safe.

Finally, the next time Elysian stirred, he cracked his eyes open slightly. He was an early riser, evidently sensing the sun rising steadily over the horizon. With a yawn and a bodily stretch of the back, he realized that he was cuddling with his brother's hand. "Huh...?" He mused, releasing Atlas from his grip and rubbing his eyes. As he blinked, recollections from the night before came back to him - Atlas had cast some kind of spell to help him sleep. His lips bowed into a sweet smile, eyes gleaming with enough affection to make Atlas gag internally (presumably). "Good morning," he said. He still looked tired, felt tired, but still more rested than he'd ever been.

Atlas wiped his hand on his pants dismissively, looking away in order to wipe the smile off his face. "...Morning." He was pulled into a tight hug, sudden enough to make him gasp. Instinctively, he moved to shove his assailant away before coming back to his senses. 

"Oh, don't be like that," Elysian replied. Atlas swore he could hear him sniffle. "Thank you… you didn't have to stay up all night for me." 

"Don't mention it, Elly…" Atlas mumbled, finally warming up to the embrace. He awkwardly wrapped his arms around his brother, as if he would break him if he squeezed too tight. "No… no sudden hugs, please."

Elysian laughed, pulling away. "Sorry. I'll get you some breakfast to make it up to you."


End file.
